Issue Position: Health Care

Issue Position

Our health care system should provide access and choice, while ensuring quality care. The decisions about your personal health care should be made between you and your doctor, not the federal government or some unelected bureaucratic board. While I recognize that the health care system needs to be reformed, a government-run system is not the answer. I opposed Obamacare and supported its full repeal. I was the first Member in the House of Representatives to introduce legislation to defund the individual mandate provision of this law and firmly believe that the federal government does not have the constitutional authority to force any American to purchase any product.

The increasing cost of health care is a top concern of many families and small businesses. I believe that we must adopt accountability and efficiency measures to eliminate fraud and waste to help drive down costs. The federal government must also provide incentives to spur research and innovation, which help encourage medicinal and technological advancements that lead to better care.

We all know Medicare is in trouble. It's running out of money much quicker than expected. Obamacare destroyed Medicare as we know it, cutting $500 billion from the program. The problem is that if we do nothing, it won't be around much longer. We need to do something to protect the solvency of Medicare. I believe we must uphold America's promise to those aged 55 and older, but we must make changes to ensure that those under age 55 are able to receive similar benefits when needed.

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